Page 27 of Pretty Baby

“Okay.” Grant didn’t release his hand though as he stepped into the prepared space.

“Wait!” Caleb stopped him. “Stay there.” He hurried to the table and scrambled for the long lighter he’d placed there. He fumbled a bit before he got the tall candles standing in their gold holders lit. “There,” he said with a flourish.

“It’s gorgeous baby,” Grant told him as he came up behind him. He kissed the top of Caleb’s head and Caleb leaned back into him. “You didn’t have to go through all this work. I would have been fine with pizza on the couch.”

Caleb turned around. “I wanted to do something nice for you. I wanted to show you how much I…”

“I know,” Grant said when Caleb trailed off.

“I…” Tears filled Caleb’s eyes. He didn’t know how to confess all the feelings that were bottled up in him. He clutched Grant’s shirt. “I…I… Daddy!”

“Come here, my sweet boy.” Grant picked him up and cuddled Caleb.

Caleb found himself sitting on Grant’s lap as Grant sat at the head of the table. It was nice, being cared for and loved on when he was so uncertain.

“You wore yourself out worrying about tonight, didn’t you?”

Caleb nodded.

“You wanted to make me feel special and I do. But I don’t want you hurting because of me,” Grant said.

Caleb shook his head. “Can I serve you dinner, Daddy? You said you were hungry.”

“I did,” Grant agreed. “And yes, you can serve me dinner, boy.”

Caleb scrambled up and was out of the room before Grant could stop him. He hadn’t liked where the conversation had been headed. He wanted to give Grant something more and his Daddy didn’t want the same. It hurt but Caleb expected it. He just needed to accept what Grant would give him.

Decision made Caleb strolled into the kitchen. He slipped his hands inside oven mitts before pulling out the foiled container out. The hour he’d spent selecting the perfect serving dishes had been worth it as he had a fantastic spread in front of him.

He carefully took each dish to the table leaving the cheese rolls for last.

Every time he’d entered the dining room Grant was staring at him. Once everything was ready he stood next to Grant.

“Is this it?” Grant asked.

Caleb nodded.

Grant pulled him onto his knee. “This smells great and looks even better.”

“I had it catered from Michelle's. I knew you liked it so I called them. I didn’t know if they would deliver it but the manager was happy to help.”

“Thank you for going through all this trouble. As I sat in here and watched you walk every dish in here without asking me for help I realized that this was you taking care of me. You did all of this because I told you I had a bad week.”

Caleb nodded.

“No one has ever done anything like this for me,” Grant said. “I take care of my boys and none of them asked or took it upon themselves to take care of me in return.”

Caleb understood. He’d crossed a line.

“Thank you, Caleb.”

Caleb jerked his gaze to Grant. Grant never called him by his name. “What?”

“I want you to hear me, listen to what I’m saying,” Grant ordered. “Thank you. For the first time in my life, I feel like I have a full partner. Someone who understands when I have a hard day. Who might not grow frustrated with my crazy hours or the fact that I can’t always talk about what I’m working on.”

That was what Caleb had been hoping to do. “I want to be your partner,” Caleb confessed. “But I still want to be your boy.”

Grant squeezed him tight. “You are both. My partner and my boy. But you're more than that too.”

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